Ryoma Echizen
Ryoma Echizen is a fictional character and the protagonist of the manga and anime series The Prince of Tennis created by Takeshi Konomi. In the series, Ryoma is portrayed as a twelve year old tennis prodigy who won four consecutive Junior Tennis Tournaments in America. His father is Nanjiro Echizen, a former tennis pro nicknamed "Samurai Nanjiro". At his father's request, Ryoma returns to Japan in order to attend Seishun Academy ("Seigaku"), a private middle school famous for its tennis team. Due to his cocky attitude, he constantly butts heads with some of his upperclassmen as well as anger most of his opponents in tennis matches. Still, he, along with his team, evolve as tennis players in order to win the National Tennis Tournament. Throughout the story, Ryoma continues to find his own style of tennis by creating original techniques instead of merely being a copy of his father. Ryoma also appears in other media adaptations of the series including musicals, video games, soundtracks, and movies. Ryoma has been fairly popular among readers, having always stayed in the top four most popular characters, even placing first in two of the polls. Also, Ryoma's character has been featured in more soundtracks than any other character in the series. His likeness has appeared in numerous types of other merchandise as well, including key chains and clothing. However, in publicized reviews for the anime and manga, his character has received mixed reviews, with his personality being heavily criticized. Reviewers from Anime News Network and DVDTalk both finding Ryoma's cocky and "arrogant" attitude difficult to like. Though they both find his tennis skills undeniable, they comment on how that makes it "difficult for the reader to latch on and share in his experiences," eliminating the tension that comes with underdog appeal. The ANN reviewer, however, believes that some of the highlights of the series are the numerous ways that Ryoma defeats his opponents. On the other hand, Mania comments that Ryoma does not come off as too "over the top or too serious, but just the right level to be intimidating." And Jeffrey of IGN cites that though Ryoma starts off as "stiff and cold," he slowly starts to break out of his shell. Background Ryoma is a first year student at Seishun Academy ('Seigaku' for short), which he attends immediately after his arrival in Japan after formerly residing in the United States. Although only a first year in middle school, Ryoma had already earned notoriety through winning four consecutive titles in the American Junior Tennis tournaments – all in a little over a year. Due to his nearly invincible tennis play, Ryoma has earned the label 'prodigy' by the age of twelve. His looks and confidence make him highly popular with ladies, although he seems not to notice, having his focus exclusively on tennis. Ryoma notices occassionally. In Episode 11, for example, he blushed when two girls giggles when he bought a book called "doubles for beginners". He seems to show more of a preference for Sakuno Ryuzaki and he doesn't like to see her sad. In Episode 9, when she asked him to put on his new uniform he said no but after seeing her face he put it on for her. There are other examples of his preference throughout the series. He is an all-court tennis player with many special shots and abilities. One of Ryoma's greatest talents is his ability to learn new techniques after only seeing them performed a few times. He also has an amazing amount of stamina and does not sweat as much as the other players. Along with fellow Seigaku regular and friend Eiji Kikumaru, Ryoma is known to have an exceptional talent for seeing moving objects. He does not go easy on himself and pushes himself more, rather than letting himself rest. He is specifically a singles player, though he did try doubles once with teammate Momoshiro Takeshi. After seeing how bad he was at doubles, Coach Ryūzaki usually placed him in the S3 (Singles 3) or S2 (Singles 2) position. When captain Tezuka Kunimitsu goes away for rehabilitation for his arm, Ryoma and teammate Fuji Shūsuke take turns for the S1 (Singles 1) position. In the Nationals, Ryoma often found himself placed in the S1 position nearly every match. His catchphrase (and favorite phrase) in the Japanese anime is "Mada Mada Dane," literally meaning "No, not yet" or "Not good enough," although the literal translation in Japanese is "You still have lots more to work on." In the American version, it is translated as "You still have a ways to go." In the Prince of Tennis movie Tennis no Ōjisama - Futari no Samurai, Ryoma supposedly has an older brother named Ryōga Echizen, but the latter is later revealed to simply be a child that Nanjirō took in a few years ago. In the manga, Ryoma goes with his team to the Nationals. In the anime, he is chosen as a wildcard for the U.S. Open and goes to it, eventually beating Lleyton Hewitt in the finals. He comes back in the OVA, and although he says he wouldn't participate with Seigaku, vice captain Oishi Shūichiro goads him into a match to take over his spot as a regular, which Echizen does. Re-earning his spot, Ryoma leads the team to their first national victory. He returns to America afterwards, and returns in time for the U-17 Selection Camp. There, he learns that there are still more powerful people out there, and strives to become even stronger to defeat the likes of Tokugawa Kazuya. Personality Ryoma can be quite arrogant at times, but is usually able to back up his statements with his tennis skills. He is usually distrustful of other tennis players, and Ryoma often provokes his opponent before a match. In the beginning of the series, Ryoma is not taken seriously by the other students at his school, especially at the Seigaku Tennis Club. It is only after he beats two of Seigaku's regulars (Kaidō and Inui) that he gains respect from fellow club members. Ryoma is arrogant by nature, yet he can be very childish at times. He is also unafraid almost to the point of recklessness, but rarely gets angry or out of control. In the TeniPuri family chibi episodes, Ryoma is the oldest son of the family and always gets into all sorts of trouble. At the beginning of the series, all of Ryoma's tennis skills are a copy of his father's. With the help of his team's captain, Tezuka Kunimitsu, Ryoma realizes his need to develop his own style of tennis if he intends to reach his goal and defeat his father. With each match, it becomes apparent that Ryoma not only brings his potential to the front, but that he is constantly reaching a new point in the state of self-actualization – especially so during crucial points in a match. Although he views each opponent as a stepping stone of advancement, Tezuka soon becomes the wall that Ryoma has set up for himself in order to achieve actual greatness. Ryoma also demonstrates prowess in other sports, such as bowling, table tennis, and billiards. His abilities in beach volleyball, however, may be questioned. When the Seigaku students go to the beach during the anime series, Ryoma plays well when paired with Kaidō. However, he plays quite poorly in the OVA when paired with Tezuka. In the same event in the manga, Ryoma, paired with Rokkaku's Kentarō Aoi, plays decently only after activating Muga no Kyōchi. It is possible however, that the second time, they were using a beach ball, which was too light for any tennis related moves. Although Ryoma has a rather tunneled vision as to whom he considers a rival (his father, Tezuka, and Fuji), there are many that view the first year as just that. One of the more notable examples of this in the anime is Kevin Smith, the son of the tennis coach George Smith, who was defeated by Nanjirō Echizen fifteen years ago in defense of George's pupil Rinko Takeuchi, who becomes Ryoma's mother. Kevin appears later in the series in the "friendly" match between the U.S. and Japan. Kevin became obsessed with wanting to play Ryoma because of their pasts, whereas in the beginning Ryoma regarded Kevin's threats with a rather unconcerned attitude until he saw him play against Yamabuki's Akutsu Jin in the streets. Tezuka was unimpressed with Ryoma's attitude toward the matches, and as a result, Ryoma is forced to earn his place as a reserve player. Ryoma also cares much about his family cat Karupin. In episode 27, Karupin follows Ryoma to school after he accidentally packs its toy into his bag. After he discovers the fact, he frantically searches for his cat around the district. Also, Karupin had followed Ryoma to the U.S. Open tournament by sneaking into Ryoma's bag. Because Ryoma is the only 1st year regular at Seigaku and is the shortest, he has been given the nickname "O-chibi" by his fellow teammate, Kikumaru Eiji. He is also friends with 2nd year Momoshiro Takeshi, who Ryoma regards as his best friend (and the thought is reciprocated). He, Momo, and Eiji usually hang out together to eat hamburgers. He also gets along with other members of the Seigaku regulars, as well as the non-regulars. Outside of Seigaku, he has a strange friendship/rivalry with Ibu Shinji of Fudomine Middle School and Akutsu Jin of Yamabuki, and has also found a competitive rival (at least in the anime) in the form of Kintarou Tooyama Mini-Bio Like his legendary father Nanjirō, the American-born Echizen is a gifted tennis player. He won four junior titles in America before arriving in Japan and is the only first-year to earn a regular spot in Seigaku's history. When Echizen first arrived at Seigaku, his tennis was a copy of his father's. Tezuka Kunimitsu, who wanted Echizen to become Seigaku's next pillar of support, decided to become a catalyst for Echizen to evolve his game, mercilessly trashing Echizen in an off-campus match. Echizen's game hit a new height when he attained Muga no Kyōchi (State of Self Actualization) during an unofficial match against Kirihara Akaya. With this new technique, Echizen put himself on the map as one of few players who could potentially dethrone the Emperor Sanada Genichirō. Cornered by Sanada's FūRinKaZan during the Kantō finals, Echizen overcame the odds and won the tournament for Seigaku. At the Nationals, Echizen continued to break down the nation's elites, including the King Atobe Keigo and Son of God Yukimura Seiichi, to propel Seigaku to Japan's No. 1. At the end of the series, Echizen is shown to have returned to America, but comes back in time to participate in the U-17 Camp. Information *Seiyū: Junko Minagawa *Dubbed Voice Actor: David Neil Black *Age/Gender: 12/Male *Elementary School: Los Angeles State Saint Youth (US) *Known Relatives: Echizen Nanjirō (Father), Echizen Rinko (Mother), Echizen Ryoga (Adopted Brother), Meino Nanako (Cousin) *Backhand: One-Handed (Two against shots that overpower him) *Favorite Brand Hat: FILA *Favorite Shirt: FILA *Favorite Shoes: FILA (Marks Philippoussis Mid) *Favorite Racquet: BRIDGESTONE (DYNABEAM GRANDEA) *Favorite Quotes: Mada Mada Dane (lit. translation: "You still have lots more to work on", VIZ translation: "You have a ways to go") *Father's Occupation: Helping to run the temple nearby *Favorite Subject: English, Chemistry *Worst Subjects: Japanese *First Appearance: Volume 1, Chapter 1 Tennis Style and Technique Ryoma is an all-rounder, otherwise known as an all-court player, meaning he has aspects of every tennis style; he can use techniques from different tennis styles, depending on his current needs. His dominant hand is his left hand, but he is ambidextrous, able to use his right hand when he needs to. His tennis sense is extraordinary, since he has great sight not only in his eyes (very great sense of motion vision), he also can see what kind of technique his opponent is using and can figure out a way to counter such techniques, as well as being able to copy them sometimes. During the crucial points in a match, he seems to be able to increase his speed and the velocity of his shots, making others mistake him as playing at a higher pace and tension as usual, but actually, that is his best tension. This, along with his one-footed split step, is noted to be the ability of the top pros as well as being natural for people. However, these were actually ingrained into him by his father when he was a kid through special training. Serves ;Twist Serve (ツイストサーブ) :A serve Ryoma typically performs with his right hand, though it needs to be hit with the opponent's dominant hand. The twist serve is Ryoma's most notable shot. It is meant to shoot towards the opponent's face, making it difficult to return. He can perform it with his left hand when he is facing left-handed opponents. He claims that he does this so he can hit the opponent in the face with the ball. :In the English dubbed version of Prince of Tennis, the twist serve is referred to as the kick serve, which is similar to the twist serve, but is considered to be less powerful and easier to perform than the twist serve. ;Twist Serve Tornado (OVA only) (ツイストサーブトルネード) :The Twist Serve curves to the face in an abnormal way. In the OVA, Ryoma tried to use the twist serve in a slanted court, which resulted in the bounce of the serve being too weak and making it easy to return. Ryoma then adjusted his grip to make the twist serve bounce as it would normally in a court, and when used in a regular court, it became an irregular bounce. ;Magnum Serve (manga only) :A serve directly copied from Matsudaira Chikao during Ryoma's and Matsudaira's match at the U-17 camp, the stance of the serve is irregular due to the nondominant foot being stretched far back with the dominant foot firmly planted on the ground with its knee bent. However, after throwing the ball up into the air to serve it, the body jumps forward to hit the ball, resulting in a fast serve. Smash ;Twist Smash (ツイストスマッシュ, tsuisuto sumasshu) :The Twist Serve in the form of a smash, the ball changes direction after it hits the ground exactly like a twist serve would. He uses this shot to win his game against Shinji Ibu from Fudomine Junior High, and against Fuji, although the Higuma Otoshi was able to flawlessly return it. ;COOL Drive (COOLドライブ, COOL doraibu) :A powerful smash with a huge spin that makes the ball roll instead of bouncing up. It is similar to Fuji's Tsubame Gaeshi, but the COOL Driveuse enormous sidespin instead of underspin. It can be used as a forehand or backhand shot. In the manga, Ryoma uses this shot for the first time to defeat Sanada Genichirō. In the anime, he does not use it until the OVA, where he uses it against Tanishi Kei of Higa Chuu; Ryoma smashes the ball into his opponent's racquet where the ball then spins towards Kei's face. ;Cyclone Smash (anime only) (サイクロンスマッシュ, saikuron sumasshu) :An extraordinarily powerful smash done by jumping high into the air, and twisting, then un-twisting, the body back onto the ball. It is first shown while battling Atobe, before the Kantō finals. He later perfects the move while playing Rikkai Dai's Vice Captain Sanada. This technique seems to be derived from Sanada's "Ka," as the form and power is very similar. ;Dragon Cyclone Smash (animated movie only) :A move where Ryoma returns the ball at a high speed, creating a cyclone around him, which he then uses as a diversion as he hits his return. ;Rondo towards Destruction (manga only) :A high-level two-part smash that knocks away the opponent's racket with the first hit, and scores with the second smash, Ryoma was able to use this against Atobe, the one who invented it himself, when outside of Muga no Kyōchi. In the OVA, Ryoma was in Muga no Kyōchi to use this technique, while in the manga, it was stated by Fuji that he was no longer in Muga no Kyōchi before he used this technique. ;Sky Inversion Drop Volley :A fake smash where Ryoma jumps and appears to smash, but suddenly, while he is still in the air, he makes a 360 turn and hits a drop shot. He seems to have visually learned this technique when he saw Kisarasu Atsushi of St. Rudolph use it, and in the anime, can also hit a lob form of this fake smash. Drive Volleys ;Drive B (ドライブB, doraibu B) :A topspin drive volley with two consecutive bounce arcs, the shape of which form the eponymous 'B'. Ryoma usually slides up near the net and then jumps to perform the Drive B. However, during his match against Aoi Kentarō, Ryoma also uses a Drive B when he is still sliding on the ground. He then uses the force made by the ball to go even faster. Though it grants him more speed, this version lacks the regular Drive B height; due to the topsin, it curves towards the ground instead of going out. :This is Ryoma's first original shot (as opposed to moves he copies from other players), and is first used in his match against Fuji Yūta. Besides the twist serve, it probably is his most notable shot, In the English dub, it has been renamed Drive V. ;Drive A (ドライブA, doraibu A) :A topspin drive volley hit towards the face at point blank range. Ryoma first uses this shot during his match against Yamabuki's Akutsu Jin. ;Drive C (ドライブC, doraibu C) :A shot similar to the COOL drive with only half the spin. It is first used by Ryoma in the National OVA against Higa Chuu. Upon hitting the ground, it spins rapidly before curving across the court floor without bouncing. ;Drive D (ドライブD, doraibu D) :A drive that follows up a returned Drive B, it has half the spin of the Drive B, but the speed of the return is enough to get the ball past most players. ;Samurai Drive (サムライドライブ, Samurai Doraibu) :A (backhand) technique where Ryoma hits a powerful return toward the rope that is between the net and the pole. Because of the tremendous force, the rope slices the ball in half, resulting in both pieces going in different directions. In the manga, the force of this shot is strong enough to loosen the net itself, while in the OVA, the ball simply gets cut through without even harming the net. :It was first seen during his one-point match against Kintarō Tōyama, but only the outcome of the ball was shown, not the technique itself. Ryoma first shows how the technique is done during his match against Yukimura Seiichi, which is also when its name is revealed. Other Techniques ;Snake (Buggy Whip Shot) :A forehand or backhand shot that has an offset topspin that causes it to curve to the corners of the court, making the opponent run around and lose stamina, Ryoma first finds out about this technique from an article on a pro. Later, after he sees Kaidō perform a variation of it, known as Snake, he realizes that Snake is the Buggy Whip Shot and manages to copy it, although he said that it is quite difficult to perform with a short reach. ;One-footed Split Step (片足スプリットステップ, kata ashi supuritto suteppu) :A split step involving landing only one foot. This difference allows Ryoma to increase his speed and cover the court more effectively. In the English dub, it has been renamed as "Ryoma Split Step", although Kirihara Akaya can use this technique as well. ;Nitōryū (二刀流|lit. Two Sword Style) :The name given to Ryoma's ambidexterity because he can play with either hand. It is a technique inherited from his father, Nanjirō Echizen. During a match, Ryoma can switch his racket to either hand, making it easier for him to return a ball, especially when his dominant hand is unable to quickly reach it. ;Super Rising (超ライジング) :One of the common shots used by most characters, Super Rising is a half volley where the returner hits the ball they are returning just as it is bouncing up in order to give the opponent less time to react. Ryoma first sees this shot during his match against Yūta Fuji using it against him, and uses it himself to try to return Yuta's Twist Spin Shot. However, it was imperfect until the match against Akutsu, meaning that the Super Rising didn't take very long to master. ;Zero-Shiki Drop Shot (零式ドロップショット) :In the reserve match against Wakashi Hiyoshi, Ryoma shows the ability to use Tezuka's famed drop shot, which is a heavy backspin drop shot that drops after passing 1 foot of the net, then after it lands on the ground, rolls back to the net instead of bouncing. However, due to Ryoma's stance (his racket 30 cm off from his normal stance), it was too obvious and Inui stated that it will not work the second time. However, he was able to use it in perfect form against Sanada in the manga, but it was thanks to the Muga no Kyōchi. He has only performed the shot with his right hand, so it is unknown how he would perform it with his dominant left hand. ;Stuttered Step (anime only) (スタッタードステップ) :Ryoma rapidly approaches the net but staggers his stride when he reaches the service line, allowing him to stop quickly and return volleys with more control. Ryoma develops this while facing Jōsei Shōnan's Shinjō Reiji to counter his Deep Impulse before it accelerates. ;Tezuka Zone (Samurai Zone) (手塚ゾーン, Tezuka zōn) :The method Tezuka uses in putting a specific spin on each ball that he hits, causing the ball to automatically return to him. Ryoma uses an incomplete version to break out of Atobe's World of Ice technique. However, it is stated in the manga that Ryoma learned this technique instinctively from playing against his father's completed version of the Samurai/Nanjirō Zone every day. This is also the one technique that Muga no Kyōchi cannot copy. ;Muga no Kyōchi (無我の境地, Muga no Kyōchi, trans. State of Self Actualization) :A state in which the user naturally intakes all techniques he sees and can perfectly copy them. Ryoma enters this for the first time in an unofficial match against Kirihara Akaya, and controls it for the first time in his match against Sanada Genichirō (both occurrences take place in the manga). However, its weakness is that the ability to copy the opponent comes from the body, not the brain, and as a result, wears out one's body out further than usual since most techniques are beyond what a person can execute. :The Samurai's Eye (侍の目, Samurai no Me) is the anime equivalent of Muga no Kyōchi. It gives Ryoma a very dynamic play style because he is able to switch between many other player's techniques. :Muga no Kyōchi has three doors: ::Hyaku Ren Jitoku no Kiwami (Pinnacle of Hard Work) ::He unlock this when Muga no Kyōchi is useless against Rikkai Dai's Captain Yukimura Seiichi in the National Finals. Ryoma can use Hyaku Ren Jitoku no Kiwami to focus all his energy into different parts of his body, increasing the capabilities of that body part. ::Saiki Kanpatsu no Kiwami (Pinnacle of Great Wisdom) ::He unlock this when Hyaku Ren Jitoku no Kiwami didn't work during his match against Rikkai Dai's Captain Yukimura Seiichi in the National Finals. With Saiki Kanpatsu no Kiwami, Ryoma is capable of predicting the number of shots he needs to win a point. ::Teni Muhō No Kiwami (Pinnacle of Perfection) ::This is the ultimate door and final door of Muga no Kyōchi. In this state, Ryoma's hair and eyes turn permanently green, along with most of his hair spiking upwards. Ryoma then uses Teni Muhō No Kiwami to hit the ball at a speed that cannot be seen, unless one reviews it on a video monitor. The theory behind the Teni Muhō No Kiwami, according to Inui, is that it can focus all of his energy into every part of his body, like a full-potential version of Hyaku Ren Jitoku no Kiwami. ::According to Nanjirō, however, there was no such thing as Teni Muhō to begin with. It was simply the feeling that one has when they first enjoy playing tennis. However, when people become too absorbed in winning and losing in tennis, they eventually forget that feeling. Character Popularity Poll Round 1: 1st (8821 Votes) Round 2: 2nd (2516 Votes) Round 3: 1st (3578 Votes) Round 4: 3rd (5591 Votes) Tennis Record 2008-2009 Official Middle School Tournament Official Singles Results: ' *'NOTE-1 In the manga, Ryoma won with the score of 6-3, while in the anime, Ryoma won with the score of 6-2. *'NOTE-2' The match against Midoriyama only took place in the manga, while Jōsei Shōnan's match existed only in the anime. *'NOTE-3' In the manga, Kaidō Kaoru took his place for Singles 3, so Ryoma never played against Rokkaku in the manga. *'NOTE-4' Although Seigaku already won with 3 wins and 1 loss, due to Kintarō's (very annoying) request, a 1-point match that lasted for 40 minutes was allowed, with the tennis ball splitting in half and each half landing on each side of the court, settling the unofficial match as a tie. Seigaku Ranking Matches Unofficial Singles Matches 2008 U-17 Results: Unofficial Doubles Matches Trivia :*His favorite subject is Science, but having been brought up in the United States, Ryoma is fluent in English, which his classmates admire him for. :*In the Japanese version his birthday is on July 20, but in the show it was celebrated on December 24 because his birthday was on winter. :*He is also the object of admiration of his own fan club in school, which is led by Osakada Tomoka. However, he does not care about girls at this point in his life, due to solely focusing on tennis. :*His favorite color is silver although he is always seen wearing a red shirt and a red racket. :*His favorite racquet is Bridgestone Dynabeam Grandea. In the manga, he is shown wearing Fila shoes, cap, wristband and shirt, although in the anime, the Fila logo is censored out and the "F" sign on Ryoma's hat, which represents Fila, is replaced with an "R" instead, to symbolize Rinko his mom who gave him his hat when he was very little. :*Ryoma's favorite foods are fried fish, steam pot (known as Chawanmushi in Japanese), and shrimp rice crackers (usually plum or kimchi = spicy cabbages/pickles, origin is from Korea flavor). :*It seems like he doesn't like American food too much. :*Ryoma's worst subject is Japanese, but he speaks it all the time in the Japanese dub. :*Ryoma helps out in the library of his school. Category:Characters Category:Tennis Player Category:Seigaku Tennis Club Member